"A Christmas Carol" presented by Great Lakes Theater

Charles Dickens's A Christmas Carol literally saved Christmas, restoring the popularity of a then-minor holiday that had been in decline since its disastrous rebranding as "Christmas: Slammin' Raspberry Blast." Rediscover the source of the celebration with this GrouponLive deal to see A Christmas Carol, presented by Great Lakes Theater at the Ohio Theatre at PlayhouseSquare. Groupon buyers will receive A-level seats in the orchestra or mezzanine. Choose from the following options:

For $25, you get one ticket for your choice of the following performances (a $50 value):

Thursday, December 13, at 7:30 p.m.

Saturday, December 15, at 1:30 p.m.

For $30, you get one ticket for your choice of the following performances (a $60 value):

Friday, December 7, at 7:30 p.m.

Friday, December 14, at 7:30 p.m.

Doors open 60 minutes before showtime.

The Plot

In Charles Dickens’s timeless Yuletide ghost story, an inveterate miser discovers there is more to the holiday season than making up words such as “humbug.” It's Christmas Eve, and Ebenezer Scrooge thinks his sole concession to the spirit of generosity—grudgingly giving his long-suffering clerk Bob Cratchit tomorrow off with pay—will be the day's only unpleasant event. But that's before the shade of his deceased partner, Jacob Marley, drops by wearing a preview of the chains Scrooge himself has forged through a lifetime of greed. Three other spirits soon follow and whisk Scrooge on a journey through time, where he reflects on a love lost with the Ghost of Christmas Past, peeks in on the present-day poverty—and good cheer—of the Cratchit house with the Ghost of Christmas Present, and quakes before the horror of dying alone and unloved with the Ghost of Christmas Future. Like most high-school calculus tests, it all ends up being a dream, giving Scrooge one last chance to redeem himself and save Tiny Tim.

Their Take

Since 1989, Great Lakes Theater has staged its own adaptation of Dickens's classic morality tale with a multigenerational cast that brings more than 60 characters to life. A story within a story, this version opens with the fictitious Mrs. Cleaveland reading A Christmas Carol to her family on Christmas Eve. While attentively following along, her youngest son starts envisioning the story in his mind, but with members of his family taking on the roles of Dickens’s classic characters. Through special effects and elaborate stage setups, the play then mimics the original tale’s series of supernatural events.

Source Material

A Christmas Carol was first published in 1843 to instant critical acclaim and has since been adapted into hundreds of versions that include musicals, modernized retellings, parodies, and fanciful steampunk reimaginings. No matter the setting or the number of gears on Scrooge’s hat, Dickens’s playful sense of language survives in such lines as “There’s more of gravy than the grave about you, whatever you are!" as does the powerful visuals of his prose: "A crutch without an owner, carefully preserved." Dickens's themes of mortality, charity, and hope for humanity have become a cherished seasonal refrain for millions of families—and as much a part of the holidays as eating the Christmas tree.